Bradd Pitt praises Angelina for 'heroic' mastectomy decision

The Middle East's favorite do-gooder, Angelina Jolie, took the drastic option of having both her breasts removed after she was identified as carrying the BRCA1 cancer gene.

Brad Pitt has praised his fiancée Angelina Jolie as "heroic" for making the decision to have a double mastectomy.

The 49-year-old actor has nothing but admiration for his partner after she took the drastic option of having both her breasts removed after she was identified as carrying the BRCA1 cancer gene, which gave her an 87 per cent chance of developing breast cancer and a 50 per cent risk of getting ovarian cancer.

Brad is delighted Angelina - who he has been in a relationship with since 2005 - has made a full recovery from the operation and is looking forward to living a long, fruitful life with her and their children.

In a statement released to the Evening Standard newspaper, he said: "Having witnessed this decision first hand, I find Angie's choice, as well as so many others like her, absolutely heroic. I thank our medical team for their care and focus.

"All I want for is for her to have a long and healthy life, with myself and our children. This is a happy day for our family."

Angelina decided to be tested for the gene because she lost her 56-year-old mother Marcheline Bertrand to ovarian cancer in 2007.

In an article penned for the New York Times, she wrote: "My doctors estimated that I had an 87 per cent risk of breast cancer and a 50 per cent risk of ovarian cancer, although the risk is different in the case of each woman.

"Once I knew that this was my reality, I decided to be proactive and to minimize the risk as much I could. I made a decision to have a preventive double mastectomy. I started with the breasts, as my risk of breast cancer is higher than my risk of ovarian cancer, and the surgery is more complex.

"On April 27, I finished the three months of medical procedures that the mastectomies involved. During that time I have been able to keep this private and to carry on with my work."

Angelina now only has a five per cent chance of developing breast cancer and she admitted her and Brad's six kids - Maddox, 11, Pax, nine, Zahara, eight, Shiloh, six, and four-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne - were a big motivation for her to have the surgery because she wants to see them all grow up.

Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt to tie the knot

The 37-year-old actress - who made the drastic decision to have both her breasts removed after she was identified as carrying the BRCA1 cancer gene, which gave her an 87 per cent chance of developing breast cancer and a 50 per cent risk of ovarian cancer - is planning to marry her 49-year-old fiance "sooner rather than later", after putting their wedding on hold so she could focus on recovering from the gruelling surgery and Brad could wrap up his latest movie.

A source close to the couple told the MailOnline website: "Angie is keen on a wedding and the kids are clamouring for a marriage and keep asking Brad and Angie when it's happening.

"Brad has been caught up in production turmoil with his new film 'World War Z', so there's been no wedding planning as a result, but Angie has said it will happen sooner rather than later.

"They are all for all intents and purposes married, but it's become clear that it's important to them to make it official."

The couple, who got engaged in 2011, previously admitted their six children, were putting them under pressure to make their union official.

Brad said: "I am getting more pressure from my kids, and it is something I want to do within their lifetime, but I also feel like the time has come."

The actor praised his fiancee earlier on Tuesday as "heroic" for making the decision to have her breasts removed and reconstructed.

The Oscar-winning actress now only has a five per cent chance of developing breast cancer and she admitted her children were a big motivation for her to have the surgery because she wants to see them all grow up.